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Ramen Recall

Big no no for Nongshim, South Korea’s ramen giant. Their instant ramen produced in factories in China, and distributed through a massive – nearly global – network is under a recall for their products containing dangerous levels of benzopyrene, a carcinogen also found in coal tar and cigarettes. The benzopyrene is in the soup flavor packets included in bowl and packet ramen, maybe to give it that carbon-rific, smokey flavor… There’s a massive recall being called for all across Asia, but it’s moving very slowly. There are 6 products that have been identified as containing “dangerous” levels of benzopyrene, including some of the most popular products from the brand. The FDA in Manila are trying to clear shelves of the toxic ramen. In Mongolia there are nightly news reports about the ramen and published lists of the particular products targeted for the recall. Vietnamese retailers are pulling Nongshim products from their shelves with the support of local product safety authorities, who are also on the look out for suspicious bras from China with possibly toxic liquid fillings. Hmmm… The Korean Food and Drug Administration, as well as Nongshim are trying to respond to the backlash stating that the amounts of benzopyrene in the soup are minimal. My instincts tell me that if a Chinese watchdog group found the toxic ingredient, we should all probably pay attention. If there’s enough carcinogen present to raise a red flag for them, well… it’s time to toss the spicy ramen. What a bummer for South Korean pop stars who promote the popular instant food. Nongshim’s newest spokesperson is the worldwide sensation, PSY. He just joined the Nongshim family to help promote their newer “Black Cup” Shin Ramyun. Good thing for PSY, he can afford to skip the instant ramen and get the good stuff in Gangnam-gu.      
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